BOOK THREE23Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡITMYjyNt7N
Two weeks after Kim is officially exonerated, life at school has shifted, but not in the way she once imagined. The deputy’s announcement cleared her name, and the red circle around her case on the notice board was finally taken down. Yet, as Kim walks through the halls, she feels the strange, heavy quiet that follows a storm.23Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2ZTimrD6iS
Some classmates nod at her now, a few even offer shy smiles, but there are still whispers-some of relief, some of lingering suspicion. Teachers seem cautious, as if unsure how to treat her: no longer a warning, but not quite a hero either. This is the complicated reality for those who have been publicly accused, even after being cleared.23Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡN53zoR5WRG
Even though her name has finally been cleared, there’s a knot in her stomach that won’t go away. Everyone keeps telling her to be relieved, to celebrate, but she can’t. Not really. Because the people who framed her are still out there, untouched, and it feels like someone powerful is protecting them from the consequences.23Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPPbrAfoFDz
She keeps replaying the investigation in her mind. The only real lead she ever had was the call made from the staffroom landline, the one that started it all. But no matter how hard she pushed, no matter how many questions I asked, nobody could-or would-say who actually made that call. The records were vague, the teachers closed ranks, and the administration just wanted the whole thing to disappear.23Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMHx23gfbeP
It’s like there’s an invisible wall she can’t break through. Every time she gets close to the truth, it slips away, hidden behind polite smiles and locked doors. She knows she should be grateful that her record is clean again, that she is not being whispered about in the corridors anymore. But she can’t help feeling like justice hasn’t really been served-not for her, and not for anyone who might be targeted next.23Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡauyM3XmEZR
Sometimes she wonders if she should just let it go, move on, and focus on being prefect, on rebuilding her life. But deep down, she knows she can’t. Not while the real culprits are still protected by shadows and silence. Not while the system that let this happen remains unchanged.23Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡf3vInWlGU8
**********23Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLa4weSmbDJ
Someone within the Order had helped Kim access confidential information, exposing cracks in the very machinery Jabari prided himself on controlling. Now, Kim had not only cleared her name but had also been elected class prefect of Form Two White, under the visible protection of his long-time rival, Mercy Kipkirui Rono, the school president at Kisumu Girls.23Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTpFhm4Mkh4
Jabari wasted no time. That evening, he convened a discreet meeting with two of his most reliable contacts-students who had proven their loyalty to the Order of Hermes time and again. In the quiet corner of the library, he outlined his instructions in measured tones.23Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ61a5hlrTgh
“Watch Kim,” he said, sliding a folded slip of paper across the table. 23Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwxibXCZaH1
“I want to know who she meets, what she says, and if she ever slips away from Mercy’s shadow. Discretion is everything.”23Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9cTPP1WYmZ
They nodded, understanding the stakes. Jabari’s reputation for precision and subtlety was well-earned; mistakes were not tolerated.23Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6gZh1w8xeJ
Later, in the solitude of his dorm room, Jabari penned a short, cryptic note. He chose his words carefully, crafting a riddle that referenced both the myth of Hermes and the events of Kim’s recent ordeal-something only a clever mind would recognize as an invitation, not a threat:23Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAbbo8kn0JE
“For those who walk between shadow and flame,23Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXyf1nlwiXF
The forge awaits at the hour when day and night are twins.23Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhvbSPBuGd2
Bring only your questions. Leave your fear at the door.”23Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuE3ApzyS3X
He sealed the note and arranged for it to be slipped into Kim’s desk the next morning, timing it so that Mercy would not notice. The message was clear to those who understood the language of secrets: a meeting was being offered, but on Jabari’s terms.23Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGqXzNglfhB
As the sun set, Jabari reviewed his strategy. He would not move against Mercy directly-not yet. Instead, he’d let the tension simmer, showing just enough influence to remind her and the rest of the council that the Order was still a force to be reckoned with. If Kim responded to his invitation, the real test would begin.23Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ672LdKuLAk
For Jabari, the coming days would determine everything. Would Kim prove herself worthy of the Order’s trust, or would she become a new kind of rival-one who could threaten the very foundation of the secret society he’d helped build? He felt the old thrill of anticipation, the sense that the game was changing, and that he was once again at the heart of the forge, ready to shape the future from the chaos around him.23Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaIbjlSF0Hn
**********23Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡefCjVeYCcX
Mercy Kipkirui Rono watched the school courtyard from her office window, her gaze sharp and calculating. As president of Kisumu Girls, she wore her authority like a tailored blazer-visible, respected, and not to be questioned. Yet beneath the surface, Mercy’s ambitions ran deeper than any of her classmates suspected.23Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPWhzGVqnn6
Kim’s exoneration had unsettled her, but not for the reasons most assumed. Mercy was not convinced of Kim’s innocence-at least, not entirely. She saw the gaps in the story, the unanswered questions, and the invisible hands that had shielded the real culprits. But for Mercy, the truth was less important than the opportunity the situation presented.23Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡr9J4sTXnyq
The Order of Hermes had long been a thorn in her side-a clandestine society that wielded influence across both schools, with Jabari at its center. Mercy respected Jabari’s cunning, but she resented his hold on the hidden levers of power. Now, with Kim’s reputation restored and Seline’s loyalty unquestioned, Mercy saw her chance.23Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqIK4IzMHqz
She would unite with Kim, not out of friendship or a shared sense of justice, but as a calculated move. Kim’s determination and Seline’s resourcefulness would be her weapons. With them by her side, she could undermine Jabari’s authority, expose the Order’s secrets, and-when the time was right-claim the ring for herself.23Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKJKebTXfVD
Mercy’s motives were clear in her own mind. She didn’t want to destroy the Order of Hermes; she wanted to control it. She wanted to be the one in the shadows, pulling the strings, shaping the future of both schools. If Jabari had to be sacrificed along the way, so be it. In Mercy’s world, power was the only prize worth fighting for, and she intended to win.23Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡztbvtniZms
*********23Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPca3MSJWDA
On the surface, everything seemed unchanged: prefects patrolled the corridors, teachers marked essays in sunlit staff rooms, and the two schools-the boys and girls-maintained their polite rivalry. But beneath that veneer, a battle for real power was quietly escalating.23Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9I7BUAWAI1
Jabari, felt the shift most keenly. He had spent years perfecting the art of subtle influence, his authority resting not just on his official title but on the secret society that operated in the shadows. The Order had always been his forge, a place where chaos was shaped into order, where secrets were currency and loyalty were everything.23Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCT69jzjZqh
But now, Mercy Kipkirui Rono, the formidable president of Kisumu Girls, was moving against him. Mercy was no stranger to ambition; she wore her leadership like armor, her smile as sharp as a blade. She had watched the Order’s machinations from afar, biding her time, waiting for the perfect moment to strike. Kim’s exoneration had provided her with that opportunity.23Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgFtzrS1iVF
Mercy’s alliance with Kim and Seline was as strategic as it was sudden. She saw in Kim a weapon-someone with enough determination and curiosity to unsettle Jabari’s careful plans. Seline, loyal and resourceful, was the perfect complement. Mercy offered them protection and a promise of justice, but her true aim was to dismantle the Order of Hermes and seize its power for herself. She didn’t want to destroy the secret society; she wanted to rule it.23Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ34Kbt3dfrR
Jabari, for his part, recognized the threat. He watched as Kim and Seline moved closer to Mercy’s orbit, and he weighed his options with the precision of a master craftsman. Should he try to recruit Kim, to bring her into the Order and neutralize her as a threat? Or should he move against Mercy directly, risking open conflict and the exposure of secrets best left buried?23Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJrF6CokzEG
Caught between these two titans, Kim and Seline felt the pressure mounting. Kim, still reeling from her ordeal, she wanted justice, not just for herself but for the truth that remained hidden. Seline, ever loyal, stood by Kim’s side, her trust tested by the shifting tides of allegiance.23Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6hZNfmkz7b
Every encounter was charged with unspoken questions and hidden motives. In the council rooms and quiet corners, alliances were forged and tested. The Order’s secrecy bred suspicion; Mercy’s ambition stoked the flames. And through it all, Kim and Seline walked a tightrope, not knowing that whichever side they chose could change the fate of the schools-and themselves-forever.23Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡp67QjRil4r
In this silent war, trust was a weapon, and every promise came with a price. The real battle was just beginning, and the outcome was anything but certain.
Penana
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